kennedy



Aug. 7, 1962 w. w. KENNEDY AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET 8 Sheets-$heet 1Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 INVENTOR. 44 /f 07/160 M J f a I My MW g-1962 w. w. KENNEDY Re. 25,216

AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 8 Sheets-Sheet 2 II mums-mum 'ar:

h/d/ter M Kennedy BY 7 ATTORNEY Aug. 7, 1962 w. w. KENNEDY Re. 25,216

AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 v 8 Sheets-Sheet 3IN V EN TOR.

ATTORNE Y5 Aug- 7, 1962 w. w. KENNEDY Re. 25,216

AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 8 Sheets-Sheet 4INVENTOR. Wa/tcr M Kennedy ATTORNEYS 1962 w. w. KENNEDY Re. 25,216

. AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 8 Sheets-Sheet 6fi ly/2 Ha v m I l HI /& 175476 2;: l7

Wahe/Wheme iy A TTURNEYS Aug. 7, 1962 w. w. KENNEDY AIR DISTRIBUTIONOUTLET 8 Sheets-Sheet 7 Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 ATTORNEYS Wa/ier BYI 6 444.4 1 am Aug. 7, 1962 w. w. KENNEDY Re. 25,216

AIR DISTRIBUTION OUTLET Original Filed Aug. 16, 1955 8 Sheets-Sheet 8INVENTOR.

United States Patent 25 216 AIR DISTRIBIBTION OUTLET Walter W. Kennedy,Rockford, Ill., assignor to Barber- Colman Company, Rockford, lll., acorporation of Illi nois Original No. 2,821,898, dated Feb. 4, 1958,Ser. N0.

528,670, Aug. 16, 1955. Application for reissue Jan. 14, 1960, Ser. No.2,557

17 Claims. (CI. 98-40) Matter enclosed in heavy brackets appears in theoriginal patent but forms no part of this reissue specification; matterprinted in italics indicates the additions made by reissue.

This invention relates to outlets for use in air conditioning systems tocontrol the manner of distribution of air into a room.

A general object is to provide an outlet which may be adjusted easily tovary the direction, pattern, or volume of the discharged air, whichproduces a high aspirating eflect, and which has a generally flatdischarge face that may be disposed substantially flush with the roomwall and thus blended into an acoustical tile or other block typeconstruction.

A more detailed object is to employ a perforated plate for the face ofthe outlet combined in a novel manner with a deflector acting on theincoming air stream to control the discharge through the plateperforations and produced desired angles of discharge of the air intothe room.

A third object is to correlate in a novel manner the dimension of theinlet or neck of the unit with the thickness and free air area of theperforated face plate to enable a centrally located deflector to beeffective in exercising the desired control over the direction of theair discharge into the room.

A fourthobject is to provide an outlet of the above character in whichdiiferent angles and patterns of discharge of the air are achieved by anovel construction and positioning of the deflector.

A fifth object is to provide a novel construction of the deflector whicheffectually avoids discoloration of tie exposed face of the perforatedplate by contact with room aspirated air even though the air deliveredthrough the unit is at a very low temperature.

A sixth object is to correlate the shape of the deflector with that ofthe inlet and outlet of the unit so as to vary the velocities attainedin the discharged air stream at different points angularly spaced andoutwardly beyond the periphery of the outlet opening.

A seventh object is to provide within the unit a novel arrangement ofvanes for controlling the volume of air delivered through the unit.

An eighth object is to provide a novel means for varying the pattern ofthe air discharge automatically in accordance with changes in thecondition of the incoming air. 1

A ninth object is to adapt the unit for the return of air from the roomthrough the unit itself.

Other objects and advantages of the invention -will become apparent fromthe following detailed description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary crosssectional view of the wall of a room equipped with an air distributionunit embodying the novel features of the present invention, the unitbeing shown as a sectiontaken along the line 1-1 of FIG. 2.

' FIG. 2 is a face View of the unit.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section of a part of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing a different position ofadjustment.

Re. 25,216 Reissued Aug. 7, 1962 FIG. 5 is'an enlarged fragmentary viewof a portion 0 the face plate of the unit.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are views similar to FIG. 5 showin modified shapes of theface plate perforations and illue trating different positions of theparts.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along th line 8-8 of FIG.5.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of one part of the deflectc member.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of the in proved unit lookingat the top thereof.

FIG. 11 is a section taken along the line 1111 FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary plan view of FIG. 10.

FIG. 13 is a view similar to FIG. 5 showing a modific form of thedeflector member.

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary section taken along the lil 14-14 of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary sectional view similar FIG. 1 showing amodification.

FIG. 16 is a plan view of a modification of the ui shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 17 is a fragmentary sectional view taken alo: the line 17-17 ofFIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a fragmenary .perspecetive view similar .FIG. 10 showing amodified arrangement of the inlet a deflector plate.

FIG. 19 is a fragmentary elevational view similar FIG. 11 showing thepattern produced by'a further mo fication of the deflector.

FIG. 20 is a fragmentary bottom view of FIG. 19.

FIG. 21 is a view similar to FIG. 20 showing a mo fication thereof.

FIG. 22 is a chart showing the distribution of the velocities around theaxis of the outlet when the deflec is positioned as shown in FIG. 4.

FIGS. 23, 24, and 25 are similar charts for different rangements andshapes of the deflector inlet.

While the invention is susceptible of various mod cations andalternative constructions, I have shown the drawings andwill hereindescribe in detail the p ferred embodiment. It is to be understood,howev that I do not intend to limit the invention by such disc sure, butaim to cover all modifications and alternat constructions falling withinthe spirit and scope of invention as expressed in the appended claims.

The improved distribution unit includes a tubular ing having a collar 10at one end defining an inlet 11 flaring at the opposite or outlet endwhich is adapted be mounted in the ceiling 12 and, as shown in FIGS. and11, may be of the same size and shape as the or blocks 13 commonly usedin acoustical Walls. collar 10 is adapted to telescope within and beconnet to the branch 14 of an air supply duct 14.

In the forms shown in FIGS. 1, 2 10, and 15, the co 10 is square incross section and the ends of its flat s; merge at 16 with the casingwalls 17 which are flat the way to the discharge edge and form a pyramfrustum having a slope of about 60. The walls 17 minate in flanges 18which may, if desired, overlap adjacent parts of the ceiling as shown inFIGS. 1 an and define edges of a rectangular outlet opening 9. analternative, the edge portion of the flange may bent upwardly at rightangles as indicated at 19 in F1 10 and 15 and sized to fit between fourof the ceilin. wall blocks 13. In this case, the flange edges 18 formedwith longitudinal ribs 20 which form gror receiving the ribs on theusual T-bars 21 that are 1 to support the adjacent ceiling blocks.

The inner peripheral portion of the flanges 18 or is depressed slightlyto provide a seat for receiving edges of a flat perforated face plate 22which is sub:

vlly flush with the outer face of the flange 18 and may enclosed at itsedges by a narrow frame 23 secured the flange by screws 24. Theperforations 25 in the tte 22 are relatively small and of equal sizeand, to Wide the necessary impingement areas for causing eral spreadingof the discharged air streams as will be :cribed later, the perforationsare spaced apart unimly and correlated in size with the plate thicknessso to permit the freeflow of air outwardly and at large gles relative tothe axis 15 as indicated by the arrows in 3. 4. The shape of the holesis largely a matter of ign preference. For example, they may be circularshown in FIGS. 2, 5, and 10 or of any other desired pe such as theelongated slots 25 shown in FIGS. 6 7 arranged in groups with the slotsof adjacent groups pendicular to each other. he invention aims tocontrollably vary the pattern of air discharged through the perforationsof the outlet correlating numerous factors including the thickness heface plate 22, the free. area of the plate, and the of the uncoveredplate area in relation to the effecarea of the inlet 11. Preferably, theface plate is than .035 of an inch thick and the free air area thereugh,that is, the total area of the holes 25, is between [11d 55 percent ofthe total area of the plate. The of the plate should be at least fourtimes the free of the inlet 11 at its smallest section. 'ith a unit thusproportioned, the desired control over air discharge pattern is achievedthrough the use of flector member 27 smaller in size than the inlet '11disposed within the flared portion of the casing nd the end of the inletto intercept part of the air m delivered through the latter, thedeflector being :rated by holes 26 (FIG. and 26 (FIG. 6) and itablymounted if it is desired to vary the amount sch interception afterinstallation in service use. :rably the deflector member takes the formof a thin lying adjacent the face plate 22 and movable relative to tobring the holes 26 or 26 therein into varying :es of register with theperforations 25 of the face In the forms shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, theholes if the same size and shape as the perforations 25 #5 in the faceplate and are equally spaced over the area of the disk. lile the diskmay be rotatably mounted on the face and turned relative thereto toobtain different areas terception of the incoming air stream as shown in13 and 15, it is preferred to adjust the disk edge- .n a straight line.To this. end, the face plate 22 is :d with an elongated slot 28 (FIGS.5, 6, and 8) y receiving a bar 29 herein comprising two strips g bentover flanges 30 which are welded or other- ;ecured against the top ofthe deflector disk with a 30 separating the two so as to permit freeedge hifting of the disk. a other edges of the strips project throughthe slot :1 are spread apart as indicated at 36 to provide a a which maybe grasped to shift the bar and disk the slot. The bar is thus securedto the disk but le with a close friction fit along the slot 28, whichenough to permit the holes and perforations on sk and face plate to, be,brought into full register 1), any desired degree of partial register(FIG. 5), be fully covered (FIG. 6). When circular holes :rforations areemployed as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 10, the slot 28 is extendeddiametrically of one holes'in the respective plates. In the case of thepattern shown in FIG. 5, the slot 28 extends dily of the elongatedperforations 25 and 26 which )stantially covered in the position shownin FIG. 6. bar 29 is slid upwardly and to the right, full of theperforations and holes is attained when reaches the end of the slot asshown in FIG. 7. certain patterns of distribution of the dischargeddeflector 27 may be circular in shape and is rounded and, for the squarefaced outlet shown, is related in size to that of the inlet '11. Whencircular in shape as shown in 'FIGS. 2, 5, and 10, the diameter of thedisk is more than half the minimum transverse di mension of the inletbut substantially less than the transverse dimension. With the diameterof the circular disk equal to two-thirds of the length of one side ofthe square inlet as shown in FIG. 1, the effective cross section of theinlet is 2.8 times the area of the disk.

With the face plate '22 perforated to provide a large free area asdescribed and the deflector 27 disposed opposite and of substantiallysmaller area than the inlet 11, it will be apparent that the total areaof the plate holes 25 or 25 surrounding the deflector is substantiallygreater than the cross-sectional area of the inlet 11. As a result, theentire volume of air delivered through the inlet will flow through theunit without a change in its direction before contacting the face plateand without loss of its velocity or the creation of a static pressurewithin the unit. Thus, the deflector 27 may be used in accordance withthe present invention to govern the direction of the air discharge fromthe face of the perforated plate 22 so as to produce various desiredpatterns for effective distribution of the air within the room in whichthe unit is eventually installed.

The unique manner in which the casing, the perforated face plate, andthe adjustable deflector coact toproduce various air discharge patternswill now be described, it being first assumed that the deflector isshifted to the position shown in FIG. 4 to bring the perforations 25 andthe holes 26 out of register and thus close the central part of the faceplate against the flow of air therethrough. In this position, theimpingement area presented to the air stream delivered through the inlet11 will be a maximum.

As the central portion of the advancing air stream encounters the closeddisk, it will be deflected laterally and outwardly and, since an airstream does not bouncebackwardly, the flow will be radially andoutwardly in all directions along the inner surface of the disk asindicated by the arrows 32. Such outward lateral flow into the outerannular portion of the air stream as indicated at 33 will bend thelatter outwardly as it passes through the perforations 25 as indicatedat 34. The outward bending is further increased as a result of the lowpressure region which develops at 35 within the casing due to theoutward flaring of the walls 17 and the fact that the latter are ofstraight contour all the way to the edge of the outlet. As a result ofthese, two actions (the low pressure at 35 and the outward spreading ofthe central part of the air stream by the deflector 27), the fourblankets of air flowing downwardly along the flat walls 17 will be bentupwardly asthey enter the room and will fan outwardly at a relativelysmall angle to the ceiling. Such wide spreading of the air stream isparticularly desirable in cooling systems.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that when the deflector 27 ispositioned as shown in FIG. 4 so as to close the opposing holes 25 inthe face plate, an imperforate mask is formed over the area of the faceplate covered by the deflector. This mask thus acts to intercept acorresponding portion of the air stream delivered through the inlet anddeflect such air outwardly and laterally across the surroundingperforated area of the face plate thus causing the air dischargedthrough the holes of such area to be diverted outwardly.

The above described action of the deflector 27 in producing theoutwardly diverging pattern of the discharged air as shown in FIG. 4 isattributable to the flow of air through the casing without loss of itsvelocity pressure or conversion thereof to static pressure within thecasing. Such a flow path results, as above described, by making the areaof the discharge outlet, that is, the combined area of the exposedperforations 25 surrounding the deflector larger than thecross-sectional area 0 the inlet 11. In this way, the building up of aback pressure within the casing and the consequent discharge of theindividual air streams downwardly and perpendicular to the face of theplate is prevented.

The unit conditioned as above described is particularly effective inproducing a strong aspirating action below the unit as the air streamadvances into the room, that is, to cause mixing of incoming cool airwith the room air so as to avoid exposure of the occupants toobjectionable downwardly directed cold drafts. Since the central part ofthe face plate'is now closed, and the air is discharged in a tubularoutwardly flaring stream, there will be a relatively large region of lowpressure immediately below the center of the unit. Room air drawn intothis region as indicated by the arrows 36 will be exposed to theinterior of the incoming stream and will mix rapidly with the latter.Also, due to the perforated character of the face plate, the incomingair will be divided into a multiplicity of small streams at the pointsof entry into the room. By aspiration, air from the room will be drawnlaterally and in between these streams and mixed quickly with the latterowing to the large peripheral areas thereof.

The unit above described may, simply by adjustment of the deflector 27,be adapted for use in a heating system where it is usually desirable todirect most of the air downwardly in a substantially vertical direction.For this purpose, the disk 27 may be shifted to the position shown inFIG. 1 in which the holes 26 are in full register with the perforations25 in the face plate. As indicated by the arrows, air will flowvertically down through all of the holes in the disk and very little ofthe above described deflecting action of the latter will be exerted. Atthe same time, the low pressure in the region 35 will not, while actingalone, produce appreciable outward bending of the peripheral part of theair stream; consequently there will be little spreading of the stream asit is discharged into the room.

The conditions above described and illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 4represent the extreme limits of the range through which the pattern ofthe discharged air may be varied to suit the requirements in various airconditioning installations. Any desired variation of the pattern withinthis range may be achieved by adjustingthe deflector to the properintermediate position. In such a case, the proportion of the incomingair which is delivered vertically will correspond to the amount of theuncovering of the central perforations 25. Similarly, the deflectingaction of the disk 27 and therefore the degree of spreading of thedischarged air will decrease progressively as the perforations areuncovered. As a result, the spread and the throw of the discharged airstream may be varied to suit the prevailing service conditions includingtemperature of the delivered air, ceiling height, room size, etc.

The invention also contemplates the provision of novel means arrangedwithin the casing for selective adjustment to vary the direction ofthe-discharged air stream and also the volume of air delivered throughthe outlet. In the form shown, this means comprises four generally fiatvanes or baffles 38 of trapezoidal shape disposed within the inlet 11wit-h their longer edges substantially coextensive with the sides of thecollar and joined to the latter through hinges 39 (FIGS. 10 and 11). Thelatter may be of the so-called pintle type with one set of eyes formedat the edge of vanes 38 and the other set bent from a strip 40 spotwelded or otherwise secured against the collar 10 so as to locate thehinge axes near and along the lines 16 of the intersection of the collarand the respective walls 17 so that the baflles may be swung downwardlyand outwardly to inactive positions against the inner sides of the walls17 as shown at the right in FIG. 10. By closely fitting the hinge parts,enough friction may be developed to maintain any adjusted position ofthe individual bafiies. The latter are shorter than the vertical spacebetween the hinges 39 and the face plate 22, but long enough to overliethe extreme outer edge of the deflector 27 when inclined at aboutforty-five degrees as shown in FIG. 11.

6 -In this position of the; baflie 38, the corresponding per foratedside portion of the face plate, although not closel' covered by thebaflle, is nevertheless blocked effectuall' against any substantial flowof air therethrough. Thus if it is desired to confine the outward flowof the air t two directions from opposite sides of the outlet, the batfies 38 corresponding to these directions are left in th inactivepositions against the wall 17 as in the case 0 the upper and lowerbaflles in FIG. 10 while the othe two baflles are swung into activeposition as shown i1 FIG. 10. The latter baflles effectually block 011?the out ward flow of the air from their corresponding sides 0 the outletand a two way discharge of the air is attainet from the other two sidesof the outlet. If the air dis charge is to be in only one direction, theother three or the baflles are swung to active position. Or, if a thICtdirection discharge is desired, only the baffie correspond ing to theother direction is raised to active position the other three being leftinactive and against the walls 17 The baflles 38 are most effective intheir blocking o1 masking action when disposed at about 45 to the faceplate as in the case of the right and left hand bafies showr in FIG. 10.If only a partial blocking action in one or more directions is desired,the corresponding baflles may be swung only part of the distance betweenthe inactive and fully eflective positions for example as shown it FIG.11. Thus a lesser out-ward spreading of the discharged air stream may beachieved in the directions thus selected.

The baffles 38, when mounted as described above, may be utilized toperform the additional function 01 regulating the volume of airdelivered through the outlet without detracting from the impingingaction of the deflector 27 in producing outward spreading of the airstream. For this purpose, all of the bafiies or vanes are swung inwardlyand upwardly beyond the vertical and toward the horizontal positionsshown in FIG. 12, in which the greatest volume reduction is produced. Inthis position, the inclined ends 41 of the vanes lie close to each otherat miter corners and the inner or free edges 42 cooperates with eachother to define the inlet 11 which, although of reduced area, remainscentered with respect to the collar 10, the face plate 22, and thedeflector disk 27. The latter thus operates as described above incontrolling the pattern and the throw of the discharged air stream.

The effective area of the inlet 11 may be increased from this minimumcross section by further opening of the baffles 38 in unison. This isdone by swinging the vanes downwardly from the horizontal positionsuntil the desired rate of flow through the inlet is attained.

For installations where it is desired to vary both the pat-tern and thevolume of the discharged air, a second set of vanes 43 (FIGS. 10 and 11)similar to the bafiles 38 maybe mounted on the collar 10 and spacedabove the baffles 38. As in the case of the baffles 38, the vanes 43 areof trapezoidal shape and project from hinges 44 that may be secured tothe sides of the collar 10 along the upper edge of the latter. Thesevanes'niay lie in inactive vertical position against the sides of thecollar 10 or be swung into the inlet as shown in FIGS. 1 and 10. Theeffective area of the inlet may thus be reduced according to the volumeof air desired to be delivered through the outlet. By positioning thevarious vanes 43 at the same angles relative to the horizontal,

the inlet opening defined by their inner free edges will always becentered properly relative to the axis of the unit and the deflector 27and the discharged air will be distributed uniformly around the outlet.

The damper vanes 43, when used to reduce the volume of air deliveredthrough the unit, do not detract from the versatility of the unit inproviding for long or short throws of the air stream. When a short throwis desired, the vanes 43 would be swung upwardly and away from the faceplate in order to obtain the desired notion in the volume of airdelivered. In this posil, the air stream flowing through the inlet ofreduced 1 expands considerably within the flared portion of casing andthus strikes the deflector 27 at a lower )city. The outward throw of theair into the room 'educed correspondingly. Vhen a long throw at reducedvolume is desired, the es 43 are swung inwardly to reduce the area ofthe :t but are inclined downwardly as shown in phantom FIG. 1. The freeends of the vanes then cooperate form an orifice disposed close to thedeflector 27 inst which the air impinges at relatively high velocity. s,as described above, increases the outward flow of discharged air stream.The distribution unit above described lends itself readily adjustmentautomatically with changes in operating .ditions, for example, thedelivered air temperature an the conditioning system is changed fromheating cooling operation and vice versa. For this purpose, deflectormember 27 is slidably mounted on the face te as described above andconnected, preferably augh an upstanding lug 45 (FIGS. 16 and 17) nearits .ter to one end of a rod 46 whose other end is coupled the movableend of a bellows '47. The other end of latter may be secured to abracket 48 rigid with the ing of the outlet. Contractile springs 49stretched ween the bracket and the movable end of the bellows tend tocontract the latter as permitted by thepreling volume of the expansiblefluid filling the bellows. [he bellows is disposed in the path of theair flowing ough the unit and dimensioned to hold the. deflector k inthe position shown in FIG. 7 and fully uncovering perforations 25 whenwarm air such asis used for lting is being delivered through the outlet.The air ram is thus discharged downwardly through all parts the faceplate (FIG. 1) as is described during the lting season. When cold air issupplied through the :let, the bellows 47 contracts and shifts thedeflector to fully cover the perforations 25 (FIG. 6) and thus deflectoris most effective in producing maximum. outrd spreading of the air as itenters the room. The *forations 25 may be partially uncovered atintermete temperatures so as to produce, if desired, a distr-ge patternwhich varies progressively with the changes the temperature of the airflowing through the unit. sometimes it is desirable to utilize the unitabove deibed as a return air inlet as well as a conditioned air Jplyoutlet. This may be accomplished without decting from the intendedaction of the deflector by an 'angement such as that shown in FIG. 15 inwhich a urn air duct 50 is extended downwardly through the lar 10 withits open lower end terminating at a central :ning in the face plate 22-In this instance, the lower 1 of the duct 50 takes the form of acylindrical collar telescoping in and journaled on the duct proper andving a narrow bottom flange 52 underlying the face .te. The perforateddeflector 27 is a flat ring held ainst a washer 53 on the face plate 22by a plurality lugs 54 rigid with the collar 51. A lug 55 on the deztorprojects through an arcuate slot 56 in the face no and is accessiblebelow the latter to permit turning the deflector to vary the uncoveringof the perforans 25 in the same manner as with the slidable deztor disksabove described. A decorative covering of table design may be applied tothe lower end of the urn air duct. As before, the area of the deflector27 is made suflently smaller than the area of the ring-like inlet beeenthe collar and the return duct 50' to insure that a total area of theuncovered perforations in the plate is more than the area of the inlet.In this way, the stream may flow directly through the unit without ange,in its direction or loss of its velocity which is lized in the mannerdescribed above in controlling the 8 resultant angle of discharge of theair from the face of the plate 22.

Instead of employing a disk perforated by relatively small holes asdescribed above, a deflector member of the construction shown in FIGS.13 and 14 may be used. In this case, two disks 58 and 59 of equal sizeand disposed oneabove the other are formed with imperforate segmentalarms of similar width. The disk '58 is fixed to the top of the faceplate 22 while the disk 59 is coupled as by a friction washer 60 to apin 61 journaled in and projecting down through the face plate. Byturning the pin, the arms 59 may be swung to positions covering theapertures between the arms SS-of the nonrotatable disk. Or, when thearms 59 overlap the arms 58, some or all of the perforations 2Sintervening between the arms 5% will be uncovered, maximum opening ofthe perforations 25 being obtained when the arms 58 and 59 are in fullregister with each other. Thus, by turning the disk 59 back and forththe pattern of the discharged air may be varied the same as with thedeflector construction previously described.

I have discovered that the velocity of the discharged air at angularlyspaced points around the outlet may be varied to produce differentdischarge patterns by varying the shapes of the inlet 11 and thedeflector 27 in relation to each other and to the outlet opening 9. Forexample, when the unit is constructed and adjusted as shown in FIG. 4with the inlet neck 10 six inches square, the outlet 9 twelve inchessquare, and the circular deflector 27 four and one-half inches indiameter, the velocity at an eighteen inch radius and three-fourths ofan inch below the ceiling will vary as shown by the curve 70 (FIG. 22).That is to say, the velocity varies from a maximum opposite the centersof the outlet edges and a minimum beyond the corners. The totalvariation is not substantial being only feet per minute for a flow ratethrough the unit of 300 c.f.=m. Such a unit is well suited forinstallations where it is desirable to throw the air outwardlyapproximately equal distances in all directions.

A similarly shaped velocity pattern 71 but with somewhat less variationbetween the maximum and minimum velocities will be achieved as shown inFIG. 25 when the inlet neck It is made cylindrical instead of square andsix inches in diameter.

A unit better suited for uniform distribution of the air to all partsincluding the corners of a relatively small room'may be formed byemploying a six inch cylindrical inlet 10 in a twelve inch square outlet9 with the deflector 27 four and one-half inches square and centeredrelative to the outlet axis but turned so that the corners of thedeflector bisect the side edges of the outlet 9 as shown in FIGS. 18 and23. In this instance, a larger part of the corner area of the face plate22 is uncovered and a correspondingly smaller part of the area at thecenter of the sides is left open. As a result, the air velocitiesoutwardly from the corner of the outlet are increased substantially ascompared to velocities opposite the centers of the outlet edges. Thus,by locating the outlet 9 with the edges paralleling the room walls, theperipheral discharge patterns achieved will cause a maximum throw of airtoward the corners of the room. If, with the relationship shown in FIG.23, the corners of the square deflector 2'7 are rounded ofl as indicatedat 27 (FIG. 24), the minimum velocity opposite the centers of the outletmargins will be increased while retaining a generally square shape ofthe velocity pattern 72.

When the unit above described is conditioned for 'maximum outwardspreading of the air delivered as is desirable in most coolinginstallations, warmer room air is aspirated effectually into the centerof the conical air stream 34 as indicated by the arrows 36 in FIG. 4 andsweeps across the surface of the plate 22. Frequently this results inthe condensation of moisture on the plate or objectionable discolorationthereof by the accumulation. of the dust particles carried in the air. Ihave discovered that such smudging may be avoided by a simple adjustmentof the deflector 27 shown in FIG. or a construction of the latter toprevent the aspirated room air from coming into direct contact with thesurface of the face plate. be accomplished by providing in the otherwiseclosed area of the deflector, a multiplicity of holes well distributedover the centraldeflecting area and correlated in size with the velocityof the air flowing through the unit so as to cause small streams or jetsof the air, indicated at 77 in FIG. 19, to be discharged through theface plate and beyond the latter a short distance sufficient to blockthe aspirated stream and prevent it from coming into contact with theplate surface. For the flow rates commonly used in room cooling systems,the desired blocking action is achieved when thedeflecting area isperforated by closely spaced holes 75 about of an inch in diameter ascompared to 7 of an inch for the holes 25' in the outer or uncoveredportion ofthe face plate. Preferably, the total flow through therestricted holes is on the order of 5 to percent of the total airdelivered through the inlet 11.

Where the deflector 27 is formed as a separate plate lying against aface plate perforated by the holes 25 over its entire area, therestrictedholes 75 are spaced to correspond to the holes 25 as shown inFIG. 20. By means of a clamping bolt or rivet 76, the deflector may beheld against the face plate 22 with the holes 75 in register with theholes 25. Or, if the deflector is an integral part of the face plate 22as shown in FIG. 21, the larger holes may be punched in the outerperipheral portion while the central or deflector area is perforated bythe smaller holes. With the face plate and deflector constructed asshown in FIGS. 1 to 5 to provide for varying the air discharge patternin service, the restricted flow through the deflector area may beachieved by a simple adjustment of the deflector to bring the desiredarea of the holes 25 and 26 into register. For this purpose and in orderto achieve the required degree of restriction, the holes in thedeflector may be shaped or spaced nonuniformly as contrasted with theequal sizing and spacing shown in FIG. 5.

It will be apparent that the air distribution unit in all of the formsabove described is relatively simple and economical in construction andat the same time presents a neat and artistic appearance that blendswell into various kinds of room wall or ceiling constructions. The unitis extremely versatile in its adaptability to the many differentoperating conditions that may be encountered in service. That is to say,it may be adjusted easily to vary the air discharge pattern, the lengthof itsthrow, the volume of air delivered, and the number of directionsof discharge. Or various peripheral shapes of the discharged air streammay be achieved by correlating the size and shape of the deflector areawith that of the inlet 11 and the outlet 9. The devices through whichthe service adjustments are made may all be mounted on and concealedwithin the unit itself and are conveniently accessible for adjustmenteither by moving a small projecting knob or by inserting a simple toolthrough the perforations of the face plate.

By a simple variation in construction the unit may be adapted for use ininstallations where objectionable discoloration or smudging of the outersurface of the face plate would occur.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending applicationSerial No. 230,038, filed June 5, 195 1, now abandoned.

I claim as my invention:

[1. An air distribution unit having, in combination, a hollow casingadapted for the flow of air axially therethrough and forming an inlet atone end and an outlet at the other end, said outlet having an area atleast four times the free area of said inlet, a face plate less than.035 of an inch thick covering said outlet and having closely spacedperforations therethrough distributed over substan- This mayv hollowcasing defining at opposite ends an inlet and a1 tially the full area ofthe outlet and having a combine free area between 35 and 55 percent ofthe total area c the outlet, and a deflector member, means on said casinsupporting said member adjacent said face plate and or posite the inletto intercept part of the air stream fiowin through said inlet, the totalarea of said deflector men her being less than the full area of saidinlet] [2. An air distribution unit having, in combination, hollowcasing defining at one end an inlet and at the othe end an outlet, saidoutlet having an area substantiall greater than the free area of saidinlet, a thin face plat covering said outlet and having perforationstherethroug distributed over the full area of the outlet and havingcombined free area between 35 and 55 percent of th total area of theoutlet, a deflector member, and mean supporting said deflector adjacentsaid face plate and or posite the inlet to intercept part of the airstream flou ing through said inlet, the total area of said deflectomember being less than the full area of said inlet] 3. An airdistribution unit having, in combination, hollow casing defining at oneend an inlet and at th other end an outlet, said outlet having an areasubstan tially larger than the free area of said inlet, a thin fac platecovering said outlet and having perforations there through alternatingwith imperforate areas and having combined free area approximating halfthe total area 0 the outlet, and a deflector member of smaller area tha:said inlet disposed adjacent said face plate and opposit the inlet tointercept part of the air stream flowing througl the inlet, and meanssupporting said member for move ment thereof relative to said plate touncover varyin areas of the perforations in the plate.

4. An air distribution unit having, in combination, hollow casingdefining at opposite ends an inlet and a1 outlet, a perforated faceplate covering said outlet, a de flector member disposed Within saidcasing adjacent sail face plate and opposite the inlet to intercept partof th air stream flowing through said inlet, said member havin,apertures therethrough and being movable relative to saii plate to varythe air flow through the covered portion 0 the plate, a thermostaticactuator disposed within sait casing and expansible and contractiblewith changes ii the temperature of the air flowing therethrough, anmechanism connecting said deflector member B.I1d S&l( actuator formovement of the member thereby to var the degree of uncovering of saidperforations in accord ance with said temperature changes.

5. An air distribution unit having, in combination,

outlet, a perforated face plate covering said outlet, a de flectormember disposed within said casing adjacent salt face plate and oppositethe inlet to intercept part of tilt air stream flowing through saidinlet, said member having apertures therethrough and being movablerelative to sai plate to vary the air flow through the covered portion0: the plate, and means responsive to changes in the con dition of theair delivered through said casing to shif said deflector member and'vary the degree of uncovering of the perforations in the coveredportion of said plate.

6. An air distribution unit having, in combination, 2 hollow casinghaving an inlet at one end and a large] outlet at the other end, acollar smaller than said inlet de fining an air passage extending alongthe axis of saic casing and mounted at the outlet end thereof to turnabou' said axis, a perforated plate surrounding said collar anc'covering the larger end of said outlet, and a movablr deflector ringsurrounding said collar adjacent said plate and overlapping the inneredge portion of the latter, saiC ring having apertures therethroughadapted for different degrees of register with the perforations of saidplate.

7. An air distribution unit having, in combination, 2 hollow casinghaving an inlet at one end defined by fla1 sides paralleling the casingaxis and an outlet at the other end with flat walls merging with saidinlet sides and flaring outwardly, a perforated face plate covering thelarger 1 1 v of said outlet, a deflector member covering the centraltion of said face plate and adapted to intercept part the air streamflowing from said inlet, and a plurality baflles each hinged on saidcasing along the junction )ne of said sides and walls to swing betweenan outer :tive position adjacent said wall and an active position rlyingthe edge of said deflector member whereby to uce the outward spreadingof the air from the corrending side of said outlet.

. An air distribution unit having, in combination, a low casing havingan inlet at one end defined by flat :s paralleling the casing axis andan outlet at the other with flat walls merging with said inlet sides andflaring wardly, a deflector member smaller than said inlet, ms on saidcasing adjacent the larger end of said outsupporting said member tointercept part of the air am flowing through the casing from the inlet,and a rality of battles hinged on said casing along the junc- 18 of saidsides and walls and swingable into positions rlying the edge of saiddeflector member whereby to ace the outward spreading of the air leavingthe corrending sides of said outlet. An air distribution unit having, incombination, a low casing having an inlet at one end and an outlet gerthan said inlet at the other end, a deflector smaller 1 said inlet,means on said casing supporting said detor in said outlet in a positionto intercept part of the stream flowing through the casing whereby toeffect ral spreading of the tubular air stream discharged n theperiphery of said outlet, and a baflie hinged at side wall of saidcasing to swing into positions overg the edge of said deflector wherebyto reduce the outd spreading of the air from one side of said outlet. 0.An air distribution unit having, in combination, a .ow casing having aninlet end of a rectangular cross ion and an outlet larger than saidinlet at the other vanes of trapezoidal shape hinged at their longer 2edges on the sides of said inlet end and adapted, when ng into a planenormal to the casing axis to'form er junctions at the adjacent ends ofadjacent vanes, the rter side edges of said vanes cooperating to definean t, a deflector member of smaller area than said outlet, means on saidcasing mounting said member opposite I inlet and in the path of the airstream delivered 'ethrough. 1. An air distribution unit having, incombination, a .ow casing adapted for the flow of air axially there-)ugh and having an inlet at one end and an outlet at other end, saidoutlet being polygonal in shape and stantially larger in area than saidinlet, a thin face :e covering said outlet and having perforationsthere- :ugh, and a deflector member smaller than said inlet tcent saidface plate and covering the central portion he face plate to control theflow of air through said tral portion, the periphery of said memberbeing nded to space the corners of said outlet farther from member thanthe remaining portions of the outlet. 2. An air distribution outlethaving, in combination, lbular casing having an inlet at one end andflaring tlly toward and terminating at the other end in an .et ofrectangular cross section and of an area subltially larger than thesmallest cross section of said t, a deflector of an area substantiallysmaller than inlet and paralleling and disposed adjacent the plane laidoutlet to intercept part of the air stream flowing )ugh said inlet anddeflect such air laterally and outdly, and a thin plate disposed in saidplane and coversaid outlet and perforated in the area surroundingdeflector by closely spaced holes permitting the air ing therethrough tobe diverted by said deflected air discharged from said outlet at a smallangle relative to plane, said inlet being circular in cross section anddeflector having a rectangular periphery with the 12 sides thereofinclined relative to the side edges of said outlet.

13. An air distribution outlet having, in combination, a tubular casinghaving an inlet at one end and flaring axially toward and terminating atthe other end in an outlet of rectangular cross section and of an areasubstantially larger than the smallest cross section of said inlet, adeflector of an area substantially smaller than said inlet andparalleling and disposed adjacent the plane of said outlet to interceptpart of the air stream flowing through said inlet and deflect such airlaterally and outwardly, and a thin plate disposed in said plane andcovering said outlet and perforated in the area surrounding saiddeflector by closely spaced holes permitting the air flowingtherethrough to be diverted by said deflected air and discharged fromsaid outlet at a small angle relative to said plane, said inlet beingrectangular in cross section and said deflector comprising asubstantially circular disk approximately centered in said outlet.

[14. An air distribution outlet having, in combination, a tubular casinghaving an inlet at one end and flaring axially toward and terminating atthe other end in an alined outlet of an area'substantially larger thanthe smallest cross section of said inlet, and a thin plate covering saidoutlet and carrying a deflector of substantially smaller area than saidinlet and disposed opposite the latter to intercept part of the airstream flowing through said inlet and deflect such air outwardly andlaterally across the surrounding area of said plate, the latter areabeing perforated by closely spaced holes permitting the air flowingtherethrough to be diverted outwardly by said deflected air anddischarged from said plate at a small angle relative to the planethereof and the total area of Y the uncovered holes surrounding saiddeflector area being larger than the area of said inlet] E15. An airdistribution outlet having, in combination, a tubular casing having aninlet at one end and flaring axially toward and terminating at the otherend in an outlet of an area substantially larger than the smallest crosssection of said inlet, and a thin plate covering said outlet andcarrying a deflector of substantially smaller area than said inlet anddisposed opposite the latter to intercept part of the air stream flowingthrough said inlet and deflect such air outwardly and laterally acrossthe surrounding area of said plate, the latter area being perforated byclosely spaced holes permitting the air flowing therethrough to bediverted outwardly by said deflected air and discharged from said plateat an angle relative to the plane thereof, said holes occupying morethan 35 percent of the uncovered area of the plate around thedeflector.]

[16. An air distribution outlet having, in combination, a tubular casinghaving an inlet at one end and flaring axially toward and terminating atthe other end in an outlet of rectangular cross section and of an areasubstantially larger than the smallest cross section of said inlet, anda plate approximately .035 of an inch thick covering said outlet andcarrying a deflector of substantially smaller area than said inlet anddisposed opposite the latter to intercept part of the air stream flowingthrough said inlet and deflect such air outwardly and laterally acrossthe surrounding area of said plate, the latter area being perforated byclosely spaced holes permitting the air flowing therethrough to bediverted outwardly by said. deflected air and discharged from said plateat an angle relative to the plane thereof, said holes oclatter tointercept part of the air stream flowing through said inlet and deflectsuch air outwardly and laterally across the surrounding area of saidplate, the latter area being perforated by closely spaced holespermitting the air flowing therethrough to be diverted outwardly by saiddeflected air and discharged from said plate at a small angle relativeto the plane thereof and the total area of the uncovered holessurrounding said deflector area being larger than the area of saidinlet, said deflecting area of said plate being perforated by closelyspaced holes substantially smaller than said first mentioned holes andpermitting a small fraction of the intercepted air to be dischargedthrough the plate normal thereto and over a short range of throw wherebyto oppose the flow oi aspirated room air into direct con-tact With theouer surface of said face plate.

18. An air distribution unit having, in combination, a hollow casingadapted for the flow of air axially therethrough and having an inlet atone endand an outlet at the other end, said outlet being substantiallylarger in area than said inlet, a thin face plate covering said outletand having perforations 'therethrough, and an apertured deflector membersmaller in area than said inlet covering the central portion of saidface plate and mounted adjacent said face plate for movement relative tothe plate to bring the perforations in the plate and the apertures inthe member into and out of register thereby to control the flow of airthrough the central portion of the plate, the perforations in theremaining outer peripheral portion of the plate being uncovered.

19. An air distribution outlet having in combination, a tubular casinghaving an inlet at one end and flaring axially toward and terminating atthe other end in an alined outlet of an area substantially larger thanthe smallest cross-section of said inlet, a thin plate covering saidoutlet and perforated by closely spaced holes and a shallow deflectorsmaller in area than said inlet and having an outer peripheral edgelying substantially against the inner surface of said plate and having atop surface forming an imperforate mask which intercepts a correspondingpart of the air stream flowing through said inlet and acts to deflectall of such intercepted air outwardly and laterally across the area ofsaid plate surrounding said deflector edge and thereby cause the airdischarged through the uncovered holes of said plate to be divertedoutwardly in a diverging pattern, the total area of said uncovered holsurrounding said deflector being larger than the area said inlet.

21'). An air distribution outlet having, in combinatic a tubular casinghaving an inlet at one end for directi. all of an incoming air streamalong the casing axis, so casing terminating at its other end in anoutlet of substa tially larger area than said inlet and axially alinedthe: with, a plate approximately .035 of an inch thick COV! ing saidoutlet and perforated by a multiplicity of close and uniformly spacedholes spaced radially and circui ferentiolly across and around the plateand occupyi more than 35 percent of the plate area, and a deflectdisposed within said casing and providing a substantia imperforatesurface covering an area of said plate smal. than said inlet with itsouter peripheral edge substantia centered on said casing axis anddisposed closely GdjdC and substantially in the plane of the inner faceof St plate, said deflector intercepting a part of .the incoming streamequal in area to said imperforate surface and a ing to deflect all ofthe intercepted air outwardly and l erally in all directions across saidperipheral edge ana succession of the surrounding open holes in saidplate a thereby force the air downwardly and diagonally throu suchholes, the total free area of the open holes surrour ing said deflectorbeing larger than the area of said inl 21. An air distribution outlet asdefined in claim 20 which the thickness of said perforated plate is lessth .035 of an inch.

22. An air distribution outlet as defined in claim 20 which saiddeflector is relatively flat and is secured to a supported by saidperforated plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent or the original patentUNITED STATES PATENTS 282,977 Gallentine Aug. 14, 15

791,397 Asbury May 30, 15 1,685,345 Voss Sept. 25, 18 1,997,387 McCOrdApr. 9, 15 2,059,715 Stacey et al NOV. 3, 15 2,701,998 Wulle Feb. 15, 152,775,927 Wulle Jan. 1, 15 2,821,898 Kennedy Feb. 4, 15 2,861,510 WulleNov. 25, 1S

